Jaxson Doolin, 6, carries full backpacks to storage Aug. 9 at Element Church in Cheyenne. Volunteers packed 2,000 backpacks full of school supplies for the Back 2 School Bash Saturday at 10 a.m. at Lions Park. Blaine McCartney/staff

In making those back-to-school lists, don’t forget the pediatrician.

Think About It Colorado, a nonprofit consumer awareness group, is advocating that a child have an annual physical exam, even if not required by the child’s school.

Unlike a visit to the doctor for a fever or other acute illness, the annual exam provides more time for physician and family to address any concerns or questions about growth and development.

“As children get older, it’s more important for them to bond with their doctor and feel like they can trust (him or her),” Think About It Colorado said in a statement. “It’s also a good chance for the provider to address important questions, especially with teenagers, including adolescent issues of drinking, smoking, drugs, sexual activity and depression.”

Think About It Colorado advises that, before a visit to the doctor:

1. Compile your child’s medical history, including vaccinations, allergies, health problems and the dates of any surgeries or hospital visits.

2. Update the family history with any changes since the last visit, such as any deaths or serious illnesses of close family members, including brothers, sisters, grandparents, aunts and uncles.

3. Make a list of your child’s medicines and amounts taken, including prescriptions, over-the-counter meds, vitamins, herbs and other supplements.

4. Also keep a running list of any questions you have had about your child’s health in the past year.

Colorado’s past flu season took a harsh toll on the elderly and on children, new stats from the state health department show.

Hospitalizations hit 1,528 during the 2012-13 winter flu season, with only the 2009-10 pandemic season taking a higher toll since reporting began in 2004, according to a new report from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

Vaccinations still the strongest defense against flu, especially in children and elderly, state officials said (AP photo)

Five children died in the past flu season, the most since the pandemic year that brought H1N1 to the United States.

Most disturbingly, four out of the five children who died had not been vaccinated for flu, or were only partially vaccinated. The state said this reflects the national experience of 90 percent of pediatric flu deaths coming through unvaccinated children.

There were only 543 Colorado flu hospitalizations in the milder year of 2011-2012.

Forty percent of the hospitalizations last year in Colorado were in people age 65 and older.

State and federal disease control officials are keeping a close eye on a new strain of avian flu in China, H7N9, which has caused 36 deaths in only 131 human cases. Those kinds of high death-to-infection ratios cause concern in the halls of flu research departments, but the number of new cases in China stopped on May 17.

The United States is experiencing the most severe whooping cough outbreak in 50 years, yet only 17 percent of American adults are immunized against the disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

This inaction is indicative of a larger pattern of consumer behavior recently examined in a survey by Walgreens.

Although 89 percent of adults polled believe that vaccinations help protect people from viruses and preventable diseases, more than 40 percent don’t know which immunizations they may need or whether vaccinations they had in the past are up-to-date.

More than 60 percent of those surveyed said the biggest motivator to get the whooping cough vaccine would be an outbreak in their community or city, but only 31 percent of respondents knew of the status of cases in their area.

“This reinforces the need for adults to have a regular dialogue with a doctor, pharmacist, nurse practitioner or other clinician, regardless of their health condition,” said Kermit Crawford, president of Walgreens pharmacy, health and wellness.

The survey also found misconceptions about shingles, which occurs 50 percent of the time in people 60 years or older. While 1 in 3 adults are expected to develop shingles, according to the CDC, only 1 in 8 of those surveyed believed they were likely to get shingles at some point in their life.

Additionally, more than two-thirds of the respondents thought they could prevent shingles through hand-washing, sleep or other preventative measures. The Zostavax vaccine is the only preventative measure.

The Walgreens telephone survey of 600 adults was conducted by Directions Research, Inc. from Aug. 29-Sept. 15. It was balanced to match U.S. census data for gender and age breaks.

Electa Draper is the health writer for The Denver Post and has covered every news beat in a 22-year journalism career at three newspapers. She has a bachelor's degree in biology and a master's in journalism.